PART 4
Chat at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial (cont.)
New Characters and Words 
Study the six characters below and the common words written with them, paying careful attention to each character’s pronunciation, meaning, and structure, as well as similar-looking characters. After you’ve studied a character, turn to the Practice Book volume and practice writing it on the practice sheet, making sure to follow the correct stroke order and direction as you pronounce it out loud and think of its meaning.
187 |
哥 |
gē |
older brother |
Radical is 口 kŏu “mouth.” This radical is referred to colloquially as 口字旁 kŏuzìpáng “side made up of the character 口.” Phonetic is 可 kĕ “may” [BF] (145), which is here written twice. Contrast 哥 with 可 (145), 何 (19), and 司 (95). |
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哥哥 |
gēge |
older brother [N] |
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大哥 |
dàgē |
oldest brother [N] |
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188 |
弟 |
dì |
younger brother |
Radical is 弓 gōng “bow.” This character is itself a phonetic, e.g., in 第 dì- (133) and 递 (遞) dì as in 递给 (遞給) dìgĕi “give to.” Contrast 弟 and 第 dì- (133). |
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弟弟 |
dìdi |
younger brother [N] |
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大弟弟 |
dà dìdi |
older younger brother [N] |
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小弟 |
xiăodì |
little brother [N] |
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189 |
妹 |
mèi |
younger sister |
Radical is 女 nǚ “woman” [BF]. This radical is referred to colloquially as 女字旁 nǚzìpáng “side made up of the character 女.” Note that when 女 is written at the left of a character as a radical, its last stroke is shortened so that it doesn’t collide with the component to its right. Phonetic is 未 wèi “not yet” [BF]. A “younger sister” may sometimes be thought of by her family members as “not yet” a fully matured “woman.” |
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妹妹 |
mèimei |
younger sister [N] |
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大妹 |
dàmèi |
older younger sister [N] |
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小妹 |
xiăomèi |
little sister [N] |
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姐妹 |
jiĕmèi |
older and younger sisters [N] |
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190 |
忘 |
wàng |
forget |
Radical is 心 xīn “heart.” This radical is referred to colloquially as 心字底 xīnzìdĭ “bottom made up of the character 心.” Phonetic is 亡 wáng “flee” [BF]. If a matter has “fled” from your “heart,” it has been “forgotten.” |
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忘 |
wàng |
forget [V] |
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我忘了。 |
Wŏ wàngle. |
I forgot. |
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191 |
家 |
jiā |
family, home; (for companies, hotels, etc.) |
Radical is 宀 mián “roof” [BF]. This radical is referred to colloquially as 宝盖头 (寶蓋頭) băogàitóu “top made up of a canopy.” The other component is 豕 shĭ “pig” [BF]. A “pig” under a “roof” represents “home,” since pigs were often raised at home in ancient China, as they gave off warmth and served as natural heating. |
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家 |
jiā |
family, home [PW]; (for companies, factories, hotels, stores) [M] |
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我家里 (我家裏) |
wŏ jiāli |
in my family |
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我们家 (我們家) |
wŏmen jiā |
our family |
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回家 |
huíjiā |
return to one’s home [VO] |
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一家公司 |
yìjiā gōngsī |
a company |
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192 |
给(給) |
gĕi |
give; for |
Radical is 丝 (絲) sī “silk.” When at the left side of a character, this radical is referred to colloquially as 绞丝旁 (絞絲旁) jiăosīpáng “side made up of twisted silk” and is written as 纟 (糹). Phonetic is 合 hé “shut.” In China it’s common to “give” “silk” as a gift. |
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给 |
(給) gĕi |
give [V/PV]; for [CV] |
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New Words in BMC–SL 6-4 Written with Characters You Already Know
大姐 |
dàjiĕ |
oldest sister [N] |
老 |
lăo- |
(indicates one’s rank among one’s siblings) [BF] |
老大 |
lăodà |
oldest (among siblings) [N] |
Reading Exercises (Simplified Characters)
Now practice reading the new characters and words for this lesson in context in sentences, conversations, and narratives. Be sure to refer to the Notes at the end of this lesson, and make use of the accompanying audio disc to hear and practice correct pronunciation, phrasing, and intonation.
A. SENTENCES
Read out loud each of the following sentences, which include all the new characters of this lesson. The first time you read a sentence, focus special attention on the characters and words that are new to you, reminding yourself of their pronunciation and meaning. The second time, aim to comprehend the overall meaning of the sentence.
一、我大哥今年五十八岁，我大姐五十五岁｡
二、哥哥、姐姐、弟弟、妹妹我都没有，可是我有很多好朋友｡
三、我差一点儿忘了明天是我弟弟的生日！
四、对不起，您能不能给我那个钟？我要看看｡谢谢！
五、你今天去哪家公司？你可别忘了带你的名片｡
六、我忘了今天是星期一，那家公司星期一不开门｡
七、我家左边有一家公司，右边有一家饭店｡
八、我大哥在一家公司工作，很忙，不过我忘了那家公司叫什么｡
九、因为星期六我小妹京京要来看我，所以我星期五就不回家了｡
十、王大海在他们家是老二，他上面有一个姐姐，下面有一个妹妹｡
B. CONVERSATIONS
Read out loud the following conversations, including the name or role of the person speaking. If possible, find a partner or partners and each of you play a role. Then switch roles, so you get practice reading all of the lines.
一、
台湾人：我在我们家是老大｡我有一个弟弟、两个妹妹｡
美国人：他们都住在台北吗？
台湾人：我大妹住在台北｡
美国人：对不起，我忘了我还有一点事，先走了｡我姓高，高大文｡这是我的名片｡
台湾人：谢谢您，高先生｡我姓何｡我也给您我的名片｡
二、
林先生 ：您贵姓？
谢小姐 ：我姓谢｡您贵姓？
林先生 ：我姓林，这是我的名片｡您能给我您的名片吗？
谢小姐 ：对不起，我今天忘了带了｡下次给您，好吗？
C. CHARACTER DIFFERENTIATION DRILLS
Distinguish carefully the following similar-looking characters, pronouncing each one out loud and thinking of its meaning.
一、哥 哥 哥 可 可 可
二、哥 哥 哥 何 何 何
三、哥 哥 哥 司 司 司
四、哥 哥 哥 同 同 同
五、哥 可 哥 何 哥 司 哥 同
D. NARRATIVE
Read the following narrative, paying special attention to punctuation and overall structure. The first time you read the narrative, read it out loud; the second time, read silently and try to gradually increase your reading speed. Always think of the meaning of what you’re reading.
中国有一个小学生，姓高，名字叫明山，今年十岁。他们家住在西安。高明山不是好学生，学校的老师问他的事，他差不多都不知道，所以老师不太喜欢他。有一天，是星期一，有一位老师问他：
老师 ：高明山，中国有多少人口？你知道不知道？忘了吧？
高明山：我没忘，中国有1,300,000,001个人｡
老师 ：不对！上个星期我们不是学过中国有1,300,000,000人吗？
高明山：可是老师，您还不知道吧？星期六我的小妹妹出生了，所以中国的人口多了一个，今天中国有1,300,000,001个人了！
E. SUPPLEMENT: AN E-MAIL
Read out loud the following e-mail. Be prepared to answer questions from your instructor and/or classmates on the content: From whom is it? To whom? When was it sent? What is the problem? What is the reason for the problem?
发件人：金文美 <wenmei@263.net.cn>
发送时间：2011年3月10日星期四21:18
收件人：金文山 <wenshan928@sina.com>
主题：对不起
大哥：
你好！我上次说这个星期六要请你、大姐、小弟、小妹吃美国饭。
真对不起，因为今天校长要我这个星期六去天津，下星期三回家，所以不知道我们可不可以下星期六（3月19日）吃饭？
也请你问问他们，好吗？谢谢！
二妹
Reading Exercises (Traditional Characters)
A. SENTENCES
Read out loud each of the following sentences, which include all the new characters of this lesson. The first time you read a sentence, focus special attention on the characters and words that are new to you, reminding yourself of their pronunciation and meaning. The second time, aim to comprehend the overall meaning of the sentence.
B. CONVERSATIONS
Read out loud the following conversations, including the name or role of the person speaking. If possible, find a partner or partners and each of you play a role. Then switch roles, so you get practice reading all of the lines.
C. CHARACTER DIFFERENTIATION DRILLS
Distinguish carefully the following similar-looking characters, pronouncing each one out loud and thinking of its meaning.
Sign at Hong Kong flower show
D. NARRATIVE
Read the following narrative, paying special attention to punctuation and overall structure. The first time you read the narrative, read it out loud; the second time, read silently and try to gradually increase your reading speed. Always think of the meaning of what you’re reading.
Taipei street sign
E. SUPPLEMENT: AN E-MAIL
Read out loud the following e-mail. Be prepared to answer questions from your instructor and/or classmates on the content: From whom is it? To whom? When was it sent? What is the problem? What is the reason for the problem?
發件人：金文美 <wenmei@263.net.cn>
發送時间：2011年3月10日星期四21:18
收件人：金文山 <wenshan928@sina.com>
主題：對不起
大哥：
你好！我上次說這個星期六要請你、大姐、小弟、小妹吃美國飯。
真對不起，因為今天校长要我這個星期六去天津，下星期三回家，所以不知道我們可不可以下星期六（3月19日）吃飯？
也請你問問他們，好嗎？謝謝！
二妹
Notes
A3. 我差一点儿忘了明天是我弟弟的生日！(我差一點兒忘了明天是我弟弟的生日！) “I nearly forgot that tomorrow is my younger brother’s birthday!” Remember that the basic meaning of the verb 差 (差) is “lack.” 差一点儿 (差一點兒) means “lacking by (only) a little,” in other words, “nearly” or “almost.” The structure and meaning of 差一点儿 (差一點兒) and 差不多 (差不多) “almost, about” are similar.
A4. 您能不能给我那个钟？(您能不能給我那個鐘？) “Can you give me that clock?” Just as in English, this is not a question asking whether the other person is able to give the speaker a clock, but rather a polite request asking him or her to do so.
A8. 我不太知道 “I’m not too clear” (lit. “I don’t too much know”).
A9. 所以我星期五就不回家了 “so Friday I won’t be going home (after all, as it now turns out).” The implication of the 就 “then” and the changed situation 了 is that since circumstances have changed, the speaker has changed her or his plans.
D2A. 上个星期我们不是学过中国有1,300,000,000人吗？(上個星期我們不是學過中國有1,300,000,000人嗎？) “Didn’t we learn last week that China has one billion three hundred million people?” This is a rhetorical question being used not to ask a real question but to emphasize a fact.
D2B. 所以中国的人口多了一个 (所以中國的人口多了一個) “So China’s population has increased by one.” The verb 多 here literally means “become more.”
E1. There is no need for you to learn the following words from the e-mail header now, but in case you’re curious, here are the Pinyin transcriptions and English meanings:
发件人 (發件人) |
fājiànrén |
sender |
发送时间 (發送時間) |
fāsòng shíjiān |
transmission time |
收件人 |
shōujiànrén |
addressee |
主题 (主題) |
zhŭtí |
subject |
Road in Chaoyang District, Beijing